The MMA Daily

The curtain jerker comes in the Middleweight division, as Nick Maximov takes on Andre Petroski. Undefeated, with two UFC wins under his belt, Maximov returns to the octagon looking to continue his climb. In Maximov’s most recent fight, he showed off his excellent wrestling, scoring eleven takedowns on Punahele Soriano. Meanwhile, the Ultimate Fighter 28 contestant Petroski has rattled off two-straight wins inside the octagon. Finishing both foes, Petroski has proven that he doesn’t need the judges to decide his fate.

As for a prediction, I have Maximov winning. Since fighting on Dana White’s Contender Series, Maximov has improved each fight out. While his striking is still developing, his wrestling abilities have yet to fail him. Landing fifteen takedowns and eighteen minutes of control time in two fights, Maximov isn’t shy about what his game plan is. The same could be said about Petroski, who too is a wrestler. In his two UFC fights, he has landed eight takedowns and a little over seventeen minutes of control time. With some power on the feet, Petroski can threaten if the fight stays standing. The one concern, which is ultimately why I’m not siding with Petroski, is his cardio. Often slowing down as the fight wanes, Petroski can be taken advantage by the right opponent. In my opinion, Maximov is that guy. Averaging 15.5 takedown attempts in two fights, expect this to be grueling and tiresome fight. One in which Maximov wins via late submission.